The Ides of March

Ryan Gosling, George Clooney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Evan Rachel Wood, Marisa Tomei

Dir. George Clooney
Scr. George Clooney, Grant Heslov & Beau Willimon

The Ides of March is a wonderfully paced, expertly crafted, mouth-wateringly evocative movie. Sure, there’s not much that will astound you about politics or the human condition. But this film is nevertheless a delight and a must see for any fan of the West Wing (or similarly brilliant political tales). Top-notch acting and a compact plot make for a great outing to the cinema. And, I again have to ask, is there anything Clooney can’t do?

The Ides of March tells the story of the few crazy days before an all-important presidential primary. Stephen Meyers (Gosling) is a young, gifted, up-and-coming political player, press secretary for Democratic presidential hopeful Mike Morris (Clooney). Meyers is also an idealist and believes in his candidate and everything he stands for. The waters get muddy when their rival’s chief of staff asks for a secret meeting and offers Meyers a job. This meeting, along with his fling with a young intern, sets into motion an eventful and enlightening few days for Meyers who must question everything he thinks he knows about the people around him and, ultimately, about himself.

This is a smart film. Smart enough to know less is more. And what we get is an extremely simple and neat tale, told with buckets of restrained emotion. It’s dark, but not too dark. It’s extremely evocative in its brilliant use of silence and lingering camera work, without becoming pretentious or annoying. It’s witty, but not distractingly funny. It’s fast-paced, matching the frantic pace of politics itself, but not impossible to follow. It has just a few key players and we get inside each of their heads swiftly and completely, without needing extensive back stories. It’s clear that Clooney knows what he’s doing, wearing his writer/director/actor hats, and he is a master at the helm.

The cast on display here is very pleasing indeed. The powerhouses that are Philip Seymour Hoffman and Paul Giamatti – who play the rival chiefs of staff – are brilliant and perfect. Clooney himself is spot-on, both in terms of casting and performance. It’s not much of a stretch to imagine his Morris as a presidential candidate – his portrayal of a charismatic and inspirational leader is an easy one. But it’s his more challenging scenes – particularly the one in which Gosling’s Meyers confronts him – in which you really see the fire behind his eyes. For me, Clooney is the Jimmy Stewart of our generation – likeable, charming, an everyman, but one that has demons and the ability to catch you off guard, in the best possible way. But as much as I love Clooney’s turn in his film, it’s really Gosling who shines. This film is yet another example of why he’s one of the best young actors around – a fantastically showy yet incredibly restrained performance of a man faced with a rather large ethical dilemma. He especially delivers some of the best lingering moments of revelation you’ll see in quite some time.

The Ides of March is like a perfectly formed, emotive and satisfying pop song, that doesn’t try too hard to impress us with too-clever, distracting flourishes. What it does, it does very well. This is a confident film which I highly recommend.

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Stephen Meyers: You can lie, you can cheat, you can start a war, you can bankrupt the country, but you can't f**k the interns. They get you for that.